A 'deadheading' pilot stepped in to land a plane after the first officer became 'incapacitated'
- An Air Canada pilot became "incapacitated" on a June 7 flight, transport officials told Insider.
- The Transportation Safety Board told Reuters an off-duty "deadheading" pilot landed the plane.
An off-duty pilot stepped in to land an Air Canada flight after the first officer became "incapacitated," officials said.
Canada's Transportation Safety Board told Insider that the pilot on AC692 from Toronto to St. John's in Labrador and Newfoundland became "incapacitated" during the June 7 flight, without elaborating.
In a statement an official said: "A deadheading captain assumed the crew member's duties and landed the aircraft without further incident." Emergency services were on hand when the plane landed as a precaution.
The story was first reported by CTV and Reuters.
Data from Flight Aware, a website tracking historical and real-time flight paths, shows flight 692 departed Toronto at 5:40 pm and landed in St. John's about three hours later.
The Transportation Safety Board representative told Insider the incident was treated as a "class 5 occurrence," which are minor incidents per its website.
Off-duty pilots, or "deadheads," often travel as passengers on flights – and sometimes save the day.
In 2019, a "deadhead" heading on vacation with his family flew an Easyjet plane when the pilot failed to turn up.
In August 2022 an off-duty pilot helped a Jet2 plane make an emergency landing when a colleague reportedly fainted, Birmingham Live reported.
Air Canada didn't immediately respond to requests for comment from Insider, made outside normal working hours.